AN ANARCHIST subjected to “draconian” counterterrorism laws at Dover port seven years ago has now received compensation from Kent Police, it was revealed yesterday. 

Tom Anderson (a pseudonym to protect his real identity), an anarchist writer and organiser, was stopped by police at Dover port in 2013 after taking the ferry from France.

Mr Anderson said he was interrogated for several hours, had the contents of his phone and laptop copied and was threatened with arrest for refusing to co-operate. 

The officers did not ask any questions related to terrorism, instead grilling him on his role in anti-capitalism protests and solidarity visits to Palestine, he says. 

Mr Anderson was stopped under schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act 2000, a widely criticised power that allows officers to detain individuals at ports for up to six hours. Detainees have no right to silence and can face criminal prosecution for failing to answer questions or comply with requests.

After the incident, in which Mr Anderson was released without charge, he sued the police for unlawful detention. Yesterday police monitoring group Netpol announced that the force has settled the claim, seven years after he was detained. 

Mr Anderson claimed the out-of-court settlement “shows that their actions are going beyond their powers.” 

He believes schedule 7, which has also been used against anarchists on other occasions, is adopted as a means to harass radical organisers in Britain. 

“Repression like this is intended to divide us — to make us too timid to challenge the system because we might be hounded, detained, interrogated and branded a ‘terrorist’,” he argued.

Muhammad Rabbani, managing director of Cage, an advocacy group for communities affected by the war on terror, who has himself been stopped over 20 times under schedule 7, told the Morning Star: “The out-of-court settlement is an acknowledgement that this power was used unlawfully.

“Our report on the use of this power found that over the last decade, from a total of 400,000 of people stopped, 99.993% were innocent of any wrongdoing.

“This power amounts to an exhaustive surveillance and racial profiling strategy unlike any other and must be repealed.”

Netpol co-ordinator Kevin Blowe also said that the powers should be revoked. 

“There is now ample evidence schedule 7 powers are discriminatory and draconian, undermine civil rights and are used to criminalise communities and political dissent,” he said. “We want to see these powers abolished.”

Detective Superintendent Tony Pledger of Kent Police said: “Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act provides officers with powers to determine whether people travelling through borders are, or have been, concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism, and passengers are selected for examination using a whole range of factors including their reason and arrangements for travel.
 
“Kent Police is committed to ensuring these powers are used proportionately and are both necessary and effective. The use of this legislation is regularly and independently reviewed.”